From passing the CCSE to the citizenship application
When you pass the CCSE, the Instituto Cervantes issues a certificate that is valid for 4 years; you must file your application within that time. Unless you are a national of a Spanish-speaking country, you also need a DELE A2 (or higher) Spanish certificate, which does not expire. Both are needed for nationality by residence (nacionalidad por residencia).
- Residence required (Civil Code, article 22): 10 years of legal residence in general; 5 years for refugees; 2 years for nationals of Ibero-American countries, Andorra, the Philippines, Equatorial Guinea and Portugal, and for Sephardic Jews; 1 year in some cases, such as being born in Spain or having been married to a Spaniard for a year. Your residence must be legal, continuous and immediately before the application.
- How to apply: usually online through the Ministry of Justice electronic office (sede electrónica, procedure "Nacionalidad española por residencia"). A lawyer or gestor is optional.
- Fee: €104.05 (2026), paid with form 790, code 026.
- Typical documents: passport, residence card (TIE), birth certificate and criminal-record certificate from your country of origin (legalised or apostilled and translated) and empadronamiento certificate. The Ministry can check your CCSE and DELE results directly with the Instituto Cervantes.
Decision and oath (jura o promesa)
- By law the Ministry must decide within one year. If it has not answered by then, the application counts as refused (silencio negativo), which lets you appeal; a late decision can still come.
- If nationality is granted, you are notified of the decision (resolución). Within 180 days of notification you must swear or promise loyalty to the King and obedience to the Constitution and the laws, declare that you renounce your previous nationality (where required) and have the acquisition entered in the Civil Register (Registro Civil). If you miss the 180 days, the grant lapses.
- You can make the oath (jurar) or promise (prometer) before the Registro Civil or a notary, or at a Spanish consulate if you live abroad.
- You become Spanish once the acquisition is recorded in the Registro Civil.
ID card and passport
- DNI (Documento Nacional de Identidad): with your Civil Register entry, book an appointment (cita previa) at a Policía Nacional office. The fee is €12 (2026); it is free for members of large families.
- Passport: also issued by the Policía Nacional, for €30 (2026). It is valid for 5 years if you are under 30 and 10 years from age 30.
Your previous citizenship
- Renunciation: when you take the oath you must declare that you renounce your previous nationality. Nationals of Ibero-American countries, Andorra, the Philippines, Equatorial Guinea and Portugal, and Sephardic Jews, do not have to. French nationals can also keep their nationality under the 2021 Spain–France nationality convention.
- The declaration is made to Spain. Whether you actually lose your first nationality depends on that country's law: some countries remove it automatically when an adult voluntarily becomes a citizen of another country, others never do. Check with your country's consulate before the oath.
- If you then use only the nationality you renounced for 3 years, you can lose Spanish nationality (Civil Code, article 25).
Tax and social security
- Citizenship does not change your tax position. Tax residence still depends on where you live (more than 183 days a year or your centre of economic interests).
- Your Seguridad Social record stays the same. EU coordination rules and Spain's bilateral social security agreements with other countries keep applying to periods worked abroad.
Voting and other rights
- You can vote and stand in national (Cortes Generales), regional and municipal elections and in European Parliament elections.
- As an EU citizen you can live, work and study in any EU country.
- Public jobs that involve exercising public authority, which are reserved for Spaniards, become open to you.
- Military service is not compulsory in Spain.
Effect on children
- Children under 18 who are under the parental authority of a new Spaniard can opt for Spanish nationality (opción). For children under 14, the parents make the declaration; from 14, the child makes it with their help. The right lasts until age 20.
- Children born after you become Spanish are Spanish from birth.
- Being born in Spain to foreign parents does not by itself give Spanish nationality (only in special cases, for example if neither parent can pass on a nationality), but it shortens the residence needed to 1 year.
- Children aged 14 or over who opt must also renounce their previous nationality, unless one of the exceptions applies.
Frequently asked questions
How long is my CCSE certificate valid? 4 years. File your application within that time, or you will need to take the test again. The DELE A2 does not expire.
Can I keep my original nationality? Only if you are from an exempt country (or France). Otherwise you declare renunciation to Spain; whether your country of origin removes your nationality depends on its law.
What if I miss the 180-day deadline after the decision? The grant lapses and you would need to apply again. Book your oath appointment as soon as you are notified.
What if I hear nothing for more than a year? The application counts as refused, so you can appeal; the Ministry can still issue a late decision.